Robbie Williams - Close Encounters Tour 2006

The first sketches were made in December 2005 and the delivery date was the beginning of May 2006.
There were specific constraints to the structure, it needed to be built within 24 working hours and dismantled and loaded onto its 14 trucks in 12 hours. Two identical staging systems were built to ensure the tight touring schedule could be met, while one of the stages is in use, its twin stage would be either on the road or being built / dismantled. This allowed a swift installation of decoration, lights and videoscreens.
Other specifications were an outrigger for the main PA cluster had to be integrated in the Scorpio, but it had to fit into the overall look of the main structure. We also had to find a way to get Robbie Williams up on the Scorpio, so a single person elevator and complementary staircase and catwalk were designed and integrated.
The Scorpio structure was designed to carry a rigging load of 9 tons and to withstand a wind speed of 72 km/h in use and 130 km/h out of use.
Then the complete package of calculations and drawings were sent to the German TÜV for final approval.
In May 2006, a complete test build was done at a secret building site to assure all fabricated parts fitted well together. Only then both structures were shipped out. The tour started in June 2006 and travelled to 19 different cities in Europe where Robbie performed 40 shows for a total audience of 2 million people.
The stage and equipment was designed to fit 40ft sea containers allowing it to be shipped to Australia in mid September where the tour ended with another 9 shows in 5 cities.